Easily carried eye rinsing device

ABSTRACT

An easily carried eye rinsing device in the form of a flask containing an eye rinsing liquid. The flask is sealed by a closure element that projects up from a future opening of the flask. An eye cup surrounds the closure element and a sleeve surrounds the eye cup. The sleeve is non-rotatably connected with the closure element.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an easily carried eye rinsing device.By carried is meant that it can conveniently be carried about one'sperson, for instance.

2. Description of the Related Art

A number of different eye rinsing devices, which include flaskscontaining eye rinsing liquid for use in acute circumstances and even inother circumstances, are known to the art. These flasks are often placedin a holder and removed therefrom when needed, so that certain flasksare opened as they are taken from the holder. Such flasks are oftenequipped with an eye cup into which liquid runs from the flask.

There exists a need of such flasks that can be carried in the pocket ofa garment, in a tool box, or carried about one's person in some otherway.

It is desired with flasks of this nature that the eye cup andsurrounding area are free from contaminants, such as dirt, so that nocontaminants will enter the eyes of a user.

It is also desired that the flask can be opened and made ready for usewith a simple hand manipulation.

It is also desired that it shall be impossible to reseal the flask.Resealing of an opened flask would mean that if the contents of theflask have become contaminated and then later used to rinse the eyes ofthe user, the contaminants might well affect the eye's of the userdetrimentally.

Flasks constructed in accordance with known technology do not satisfyall of these desiderata at one and the same time.

Accordingly, the present invention relates to a flask whose eye cup isprotected, which can be easily opened, and which cannot be re-sealed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention thus relates to an easily carried eye rinsingdevice. The device includes a flask which contains an eye rinsing liquidand that is closed by a closure element that projects up from a futureopening of the flask. The flask further includes an eye cup thatsurrounds the closure element. The eye cup is surrounded by a sleevethat is non-rotatably connected to the closure element.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to anexemplifying embodiment thereof, and also with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which

FIG. 1 is a side view of an inventive flask;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the flask shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of an inventive flask shown in FIG. 1 whenprovided with a sleeve and rotated 90°;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a flask according to FIG. 3, rotated 180°;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 5—5 of FIG. 3,rotated 180°;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 6—6 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 7 is a side view of an inventive flask including a partialcross-sectional view, and taken on the line 7—7 of FIG. 4 and rotated180°;

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows an eye rinsing device in the form of a flask 1 thatcontains an eye rinsing liquid and that is sealed by a closure element 2which projects up from the future flask opening. The flask is alsofitted with an eye cup 3.

According to the invention, the eye cup 3 is located around the closureelement 2, see FIGS. 5, 6 and 7.

According to the invention, the device also includes a sleeve 5 thatsurrounds the eye cup 3. The lower part 6 of the sleeve 5 lies aroundand against the flask, as shown in FIG. 7. This means that the eye cupwill be protected by the sleeve against contamination, for instance bydust and dirt. The sleeve 5 is non-rotatably fixed in the upper part 7of the closure element 2.

According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, the closureelement 2 is not axially symmetrical around the longitudinal axis of theflask. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the closureelement 2 at the upper part 7 includes two wings 29, 30 (see FIG. 2)that widen. However, the closure element may have a squarecross-sectional shape instead. The closure element may, of course, haveanother non-symmetrical form, such that the flask will be opened whenthe sleeve, and therewith the closure element, is/are rotated relativeto the flask. The closure element 2 includes a waist 8 located beneath afuture opening 9, as shown in FIG. 1. The lower portion of the eye cup 3engages in said waist, as evident from FIG. 5, by virtue of projections10, 11 provided on the eye cup. The eye cup is thus snapped firmly intothe waist region 8 of the flask 1. Moreover, an inner part of the sleeve5 engages around the non-symmetrical upper part 7 of the closure element2. This will best be seen from FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, which show that theupper part of the sleeve 5 includes inner, downwardly projectingcorrespondingly-shaped, generally portions 12 that engage with theaxially asymmetric upper part 7 of the closure element. The sleeve 5 isalso connected with the closure element 2 by means of a fastener element13 (see FIG. 4) that co-acts with said closure element. The sleeve 5 ispreferably connected at the upper part 7 of the closure element 2.

Alternatively this connection can be achieved by an element that gripsin the lower part of the closure element 2.

The provision of two widening wings 29,30 on the closure element enablessaid tubular part to engage effectively with the closure element.

The fastener element 13 is generally semi-circular in shape and includestwo tongues 14, 15, as shown in FIG. 4. The outer shape of the fastenerelement 13 corresponds in general to the shape of the uppermost part ofthe sleeve 5. When the fastener element 13 has been inserted to its endposition in said sleeve 5, in the direction of arrow 16 in FIGS. 4 and5, the sleeve and the fastener element will form a smooth and even unit.

The upper part 7 of the closure element 2 includes a peripherallyextending recess 17. When the fastener element 13 is inserted into thesleeve, the tongues 14, 15 will lie in abutment with the recess 17, asshown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 7, The sleeve 5 is thereby firmly seated on theflask.

The flask 1 is thus provided with an eye cup 3 that is firmly seated onthe flask, and a sleeve 5 which is non-rotatably secured in the flaskwhen the flask has not been used.

The flask is produced in a first step in the form of the unit shown inFIG. 1. The flask is filled with an eye rinsing liquid duringmanufacture of the flask and then provided with the eye cup 3,whereafter the sleeve 5 is fitted and fastened by means of the fastenerelement 13, said flask then having the form shown in FIG. 3.

When the flask is to be opened, the flask 1 is rotated relative to thesleeve 5, thereby breaking-off the closure element 2 at the future flaskopening 9. The sleeve 5 and the upper part 7 of the closure element 2,which is firmly seated in the sleeve, are thus loosened automatically asthe flask is rotated. What remains is the flask 1 with the eye cup 3attached thereto. The eye cup 3 is then placed over the eye of the userand rinsing liquid flows from the flask when it is turned upside down.The rinsing liquid drains away via V-shaped channels in the short sidesof the eye cup:

Although the sleeve 5 and that part of the closure element 2 whichaccompanies the sleeve can be placed back on the flask, it cannot befastened at said part of the closure element that remains on the flask.Neither can the sleeve be fastened to the eye cup.

This embodiment prevents an open flask from being resealed.

The flask 1, the eye cup 3, and the sleeve 5 are formed from anappropriate plastic material.

It will be evident that the inventive device fulfils all of thedesiderata recited in the introduction.

Although the invention has been described with reference to a number ofexemplifying embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled inthis art that the flask can be modified with respect to its structuraldesign.

Consequently, the present; invention shall not be considered restrictedto the aforedescribed and illustrated exemplifying embodiments, sincevariations can be made within the scope of the accompanying claims.

1. An easily carried eye rinsing device, said eye rinsing devicecomprising: a flask containing an eye rinsing liquid, wherein the flaskis sealed closed by an integrally formed closure element that preventsliquid flow from the flask and that projects up from a future opening ofthe flask, an eye cup carried by the flask, wherein the eye cupsurrounds the closure element, a sleeve surrounding the eye cup andnon-rotatably connected with the closure element, and wherein when theflask is turned by twisting relative to the sleeve to separate it fromthe sleeve during use, the closure element that projects up from thefuture opening is non-resealably separated from the flask to provide theopening for permitting flow of eye rinsing liquid from the flask.
 2. Thedevice according to claim 1, wherein the closure element isnon-symmetrical about a longitudinal axis of the flask, an inner part ofthe sleeve engages an axially asymmetrical part of the closure element,and wherein the sleeve is connected with an upper part of the closureelement by a fastener element that co-acts with said upper part.
 3. Thedevice according to claim 2, wherein the asymmetrical part of theclosure element includes at least one laterally-extending wing.
 4. Thedevice according to claim 3, wherein the laterally-extending wing widensin a laterally outward direction.
 5. The device according to claim 2,wherein the inner part of the sleeve is a pair of opposed, elementsshaped correspondingly to the axially asymmetrical part.
 6. The deviceaccording to claim 2, wherein the fastener element includes a pair oflaterally-extending tongues that are each received in a recess formed inthe closure element.
 7. The device according to claim 6, wherein therecess is an annular recess.
 8. The device according to claim 1, whereinthe closure element includes a waist situated beneath said futureopening, and wherein a lower part of the eye cup is received in saidwaist.
 9. The device according to claim 1, wherein a lower part of thesleeve lies around and against the flask.